Alabama News

Of the many factors working against Jackson Arnold at Oklahoma, one was the Sooners’ battered wide receiver room.

Arnold lost pass catchers left and right due to injuries last season, creating a lack of both continuity and talent. At Auburn, barring another slew of injuries — he won’t have a talent problem out wide.

The Tigers have one of the most talented receiver rooms in the SEC, highlighted by Cam Coleman and Eric Singleton Jr., the top wide receiver in the transfer portal this offseason.

After arriving at Auburn in January, Arnold has made it a point to spend as much time with his receiver as possible that offseason. He pointed to that as his reason for skipping the Manning Passing Academy this summer, an event he attended in 2024.

“I felt like for me I needed to be around these guys as much as I possibly can and I know that going there would’ve meant I’d miss a couple workouts with those guys, and I feel like that wasn’t fair to them,” Arnold told reporters during spring practice.

He was asked at SEC Media Days on Tuesday how those workouts are going, giving an update on the adjustment to Auburn.

“It’s been good,” Arnold said. “Those dudes absolutely love to work. I got receivers hitting me up at eight o’clock at night trying to throw and it’s just, I love that. Because for me, that shows that they care about it, and they want to go out there and be great.”

Arnold gave more context to those comments in an interview with The Next Round, singling out Coleman as one of the receivers who likes to get work in at night.

“I got Cam texting me at 8:30 at night wanting to throw damn near every night. Like dude, chill out. I’ve gotta rest my arm too,” Arnold said with a smile.

When it comes to building chemistry, Arnold said he doesn’t go about in extravagant ways, but he and the group spends a lot of time hanging out outside of football.

“There doesn’t always have to be theatrics involved with everything. If I go and take the O-line out to dinner, like I’ll take them out to dinner, but I don’t have to post about it,” Arnold said. “I just want to go out there and be with my guys and go hang out with the receivers and hang out with running backs and tight ends and whoever.”

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m

Donald Trump’s latest explanation on the Epstein files defies logic, according to the president’s critics.

On Tuesday afternoon, Trump told reporters that Attorney General Pam Bondi did not tell him that he was named in the files, which he alleged were “made up” by former Democratic Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden and FBI Director James Comey, whom Trump fired over the Russia investigation.

“She’s given us just a very quick briefing, and in terms of the credibility of the different things that they’ve seen. And I would say … these files were made up by Comey, they were made up by, Obama, they were made up by Obama … and we went through years of that,” the president said.

“With the Russia Russia Russia hoax, with all the different things that we had gone through, but [Bondi] is handling [the Epstein situation] very well, and it’s gonna be up to her. Whatever she thinks is credible, she should release.”

Meanwhile, Bondi avoided a question on whether she would be open to releasing credible evidence.

“I’m not going to talk about Epstein,” she said during a news conference on fentanyl.

The president’s critics claimed his explanation on Tuesday afternoon did not make sense.

“Trump got a ‘very quick briefing’ on the Epstein files but long enough to know they were ‘made up’ by Comey, Obama and Biden. Got it!” tweeted former Obama National Security Council staffer and “Pod Save America” co-host Tommy Vietor.

Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith, a Democrat, suggested Trump’s response was unhinged.

“Yeah he’s spiraling,” Smith tweeted.

Trump has been dogged by the Epstein case since Sunday, when a joint Department of Justice and FBI memo was released saying there was “no incriminating ‘client list’” and “no credible evidence” that Epstein blackmailed co-conspirators who sexually abused underaged girls provided by him, Axios first reported.

The memo stirred outrage among Trump’s most ardent supporters who trusted the president’s word during the campaign to release the files.

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian twice rebuilt his career with Alabama football. Along the way, he found one of his key staff members.

Sarkisian, speaking to reporters Tuesday at SEC media days, was asked about what AJ Milwee brings to his staff. He offered a glowing review for the Longhorns’ co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

“We forged a great relationship at Alabama when I was the quarterback coach/offensive coordinator,” Sarksian said. “Coach Milwee was an analyst on staff. He had just come from Akron, where he was one of the offensive coordinators in the country. When I got the job at the University of Texas, he was the first guy I hired. We had worked step by step all through those two years at ‘Bama, winning a national title, brought him here to Texas, and he’s grown into now he’s not just our quarterback coach, he’s our co-offensive coordinator.”

Milwee has a huge job this season. With Quinn Ewers off to the NFL, the Longhorn quarterback will feature a legendary last name, when Arch Manning assumes the role.

It’s up to Milwee to help make sure that the former five-star prospect, who waited his turn for two seasons in Austin, develops on schedule. Sarkisian had no doubt that the Boaz native is up to the task.

“There’s nobody I work closer with on a daily basis than A.J. Milwee,” Sarkisian said. “From the development of game plans, to the scripting of practice, to talking about play calls during the game, to recruitment of players. I think he forges a great relationship with all the guys in that room.

“There’s not a day or a moment in the day where I don’t feel very comfortable, if I can’t do something, that AJ Milwee can handle it and handle it at a really high level. So we’re very fortunate to have him.”

A pizza chain with hundreds of locations in 23 states is opening an Alabama location.

Jet’s Pizza is scheduled to open this summer at 1079 Balch Rd, Suite I in Madison, according to its website.

The chain, which began in Michigan in the 1970s, previously had some restaurants in Alabama.

Jet’s Pizza offers Detroit-style pies, with hand-tossed round, thin-crust, and New York-Style pizzas.

It also has wings, salads, bread and desserts.

Jet’s Pizza offers Detroit-style pies, characterized by a thick, crispy crust, as well as hand-tossed round, thin-crust, and New York-Style pizzas.

It also has wings, salads, bread and desserts.

The newly formed College Sports Commission on Tuesday released a list of every school that will participate in the new revenue-sharing model for direct compensation to student-athletes.

Every school in the SEC, ACC, Big Ten, Pac-12 and Big 12 is automatically part of the program, while schools from other conferences can “opt-in” each year by notifying the NCAA. June 30 was this year’s deadline, which will change to March 1 in future years.

As of July 1, NCAA Division I schools could begin to directly share revenue with student-athletes. Those payments were over and above any outside Name, Image and Likeness deals the players were able to secure on their own.

In addition to Alabama and Auburn, each of the other eight Division I schools in the state have opted-in to revenue-sharing this season. That includes Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Jacksonville State, North Alabama, Samford, South Alabama, Troy and UAB.

The complete list of participating schools — which numbers 319 — can be viewed on the CSC website.

This is an opinion column.

Full disclosure here: This column space hasn’t been one for Hugh Freeze cheerleading.

In fact, we’ve been quite critical.

More than once. Or twice.

A new day dawned Tuesday, however, as Auburn arrived for its turn at SEC Media Days in Atlanta.

Most, but not all, of the loser talk that’s seeped into the offseason news cycles washed away when Hugh Freeze stepped to his pulpit.

Some of the confidence and swagger that Auburn hired on was on display.

So, credit earned. Credit given.

“I truly believe that in the playoff run,” Freeze said Tuesday, “we’re going to be in this discussion because I love this team.”

That’s a big improvement over the “got to make a bowl game” line from May.

It’s a step up from the lukewarm enthusiasm that followed a fourth straight 7-loss season.

While preseason expectations run the gamut for Year 3 of Freeze, hearing some full-chested confidence from the head guy is refreshing.

There won’t be many outside of the Auburn football complex connecting the Tigers with playoff talk so having a coach unafraid to go there in such a public setting has to resonate with both the locker room and a hungry fanbase.

This team is coming off a 5-7 season but is growing into a few top-10 recruiting classes.

It has a former 5-star QB who transferred from Oklahoma in Jackson Arnold, who is symbolic of the program as a whole.

High expectations.

Unrealized potential.

High ceiling.

Yet still a mystery due to disappointing results to date.

All of that adds to being picked to finish 12 of 16 SEC teams in AL.com’s annual preseason poll.

Midpack is a fair expectation for the full media preseason poll the league is conducting this week at media days.

Still, Freeze isn’t afraid to talk playoff for a program that hasn’t played a meaningful bowl game since 2017.

“Our expectation is we embrace the high expectations that Auburn brings,” Freeze said, “and we believe this team’s potential is limitless.”

And he’s not downplaying the importance of the season opener Auburn will play at Baylor.

There is zero hiding from the fact that that first game is a big game, and we must embrace that too,” Freeze said. “That should help elevate our focus all throughout our fall camp because we’re playing a very good football team.”

Maybe we’re too deep into analyzing the impact of sentences spoken by football coaches, but this is more like the spirit you want to hear from a coach in Freeze’s position. It’s not the rah-rah, manufactured tag-line stuff that’s seeped into coaching vocabulary.

Just old-fashioned confidence — the kind this success-starved program could use.

Now, some of the old talk surfaced again Tuesday. In the same breath and sentence following the playoff line, Freeze regressed a little.

“Now, we’ve got to stay healthy and we need the ball to bounce our way a couple times this year instead of against us,” Freeze said. “I’m sure, but that’s our full expectation.”

Kinda simplifying things. But OK.

“We should have won or could have won some games last year,” he said going back to a greatest hit before recovering. “And we’ve done everything in our power to evaluate why that happened and what we can do better as coaches and then get more pieces to the puzzle with more and more players.”

Listen, they’re all just words at this point.

Everyone is close to talked out and we’ve almost reached a breaking point in finding meaning in these comments.

It will be about actions starting Aug. 29 when Auburn kicks off against Baylor in Waco.

This isn’t playoff or bust for this Auburn team, but a quantifiable improvement should be a minimum expectation for a program that deserves better than 5-7.

But Freeze on Tuesday sounded like the winner Auburn hired in November 2022.

Credit where credit is due.

Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.

The season one finale of the hit reality series 1000-lb Roomies premieres on TLC Tuesday, July 15 at 10/9c.

Those looking to catch the conclusion to the show’s debut season can stream the premiere live through Philo (free trial), DirecTV (free trial) or Sling (50% off first month).

Previous episode recap

Last week’s episode titled “Dessert-ed” showed tensions rising between Nisha and Jaz as Jaz’s codependency on her roommate reached an all-time high at the most inconvenient time.

While both ladies had obstacles of their own featured in last week’s episode, Nisha faced perhaps the biggest one when her mother announced she was retiring and shutting down her in-home daycare business, meaning Nisha would be out of a job in two weeks.

With unemployment looming, Nisha decided to kickstart her own cupcake making business. While focusing on this new venture, though, Jaz pleaded with Nisha to drop what she was doing and drive her to an exercise class she wanted to participate in, further proving her codependency is still cause for major concern.

Determined to continue pursuing her new business venture by delivering one of her first cupcake orders, Nisha shut down Jaz, leaving Jaz to take a rideshare and overcoming her fear of going out solo.

Another major development highlighted in last week’s episode was Jaz’s visit to her doctor. While there, she learned she had lost 100 pounds and is on the road to approval for surgery.

What to expect from 1000-lb Roomies season 1 finale

The upcoming season finale of 1000-lb Roomies follows Jaz as she continues her prep for her upcoming surgery. Meanwhile, Nesha gets a health wake-up call as Jaz recovers from a nasty fall.

Also happening in the season finale, Jaz reunited with her daughter and urges Nesha to make lasting changes of her own.

How to watch the 1000-lb Roomies season finale

Those interested in catching the upcoming season one finale of 1000-lb Roomies can stream the show through Philo, DirecTV or Sling.

Both Philo and DirecTV offer free trials for new subscribers to enjoy before committing to a paid plan while Sling offers those that commit to a paid subscription half off their first month.

Out of the three streaming services listed above, Philo is the cheapest at just $28 a month after its 7-day free trial concludes.

What is Philo?

Philo is considered one of the most affordable streaming platforms on the market. Known as an entertainment-focused streaming service, Philo offers its subscribers access to over 70 top-rated TV channels such as TLC, MTV, BET, AMC, CMT, Investigation Discovery and more.

New users can enjoy Philo’s 7-day free trial and continue to stream top channels, hit TV shows and movies on-demand for just $28 a month once the free trial expires.

Those looking to customize their flow of content even further on Philo can consider including add-ons such as MGM+, STARZ, and AMC+ in their subscription.

What is DirecTV?

DirecTV is a top streaming service perfect for those looking to access a plethora of live TV channels and enjoy helpful features. The base package starts at just $86.99 a month after its 5-day free trial and includes popular TV channels such as HGTV, ESPN, Bravo, CMT, CNBC, BET, CNN and more.

DirecTV has also recently introduced a lineup of genre packs, which allows subscribers to choose their favorite viewing options based on what genre they watch the most. With genre packs, users can get the channels and content they want without filler channel overload. Packs start at just $34.99 a month.

Those interested in comparing all DirecTV’s channel packages and the new genre packs can check them out here.

What is Sling?

Sling is another streaming service to consider if you want to access top-rated TV channels like TLC. Though no free trial is available to new subscribers, those who commit to a paid plan get half off the first month.

Both the Sling Orange plan and the Sling Blue plan are normally $45.99 a month, but with the current promotion, Sling users will pay just $23 a month for the first month.

For those who wish to access channels from both the Sling Blue and Sling Orange plans can do so by signing up for the Orange + Blue plan, which combines the best of both plans for just $60.99 a month ($30.50 for the first month).

Auburn football’s offensive line returns four of its five starters from last season.

Headlined by center Connor Lew, Auburn coach Hugh Freeze broke down why this position group sticks out the most during his main press conference at SEC media days.

“We get three veterans back in the middle with Dillon Wade and Connor Lew and Jeremiah Wright. And we also get the return of Izavion Miller, who’s a two-year starter for us that can rotate for all of those, and now you have two veteran tackles that have played a lot of snaps that have the length and skill sets that really, I think, improve us from the past two years,” Hugh Freeze said.

“I’ve got to bring along a couple of young ones in DeAndre Carter and Tyler Johnson and some of those guys, but feel really, really good about our first seven guys.”

Along with the returners, Auburn also added experienced tackles Mason Murphy and Xavier Chaplin out of the transfer portal.

Lew talked about playing alongside Murphy and Chaplin during the spring football period and how fast the group meshed.

“Just how both of them come in with experience at other places. It was really cool to see them pick up the offense fast and made our jobs easier,” Lew said.

“We didn’t have to spend a lot of time on coaching up. We could get straight into the technique. But the calls and stuff they picked up and that made it easy on us.”

According to Pro Football Focus, Lew has a 79.8 pass-blocking grade. Last season he gave just up one sack and zero quarterback hits.

Auburn star defender Keldric Faulk spoke highly on Lew and the entire offensive line, stating that their size will play a factor against opposing teams.

“They’re a lot more versatile. So, we have a lot of guys, they can play everywhere across the O-line. And those guys are long and athletic,” Faulk said. “Like, our tackles are 6′8″, have seven-foot wing spans. They can move pretty well. I feel like this has been the best O line we’ve recruited so far.”

Lew agreed with Freeze’s comments about this year’s offensive line being his favorite, saying he’s excited to show fans how elite of a group they are.

“We got time and experience. Now it’s on us for us to execute on the field,” Lew said. “We’ll figure out our identity throughout the course of the season. But I’m excited to go through it with those guys.”

Even when examining the running backs, Lew wants to see them all get a shot during fall camp this month.

Despite the Tigers not having a set starter in the backfield, Lew want to continue creating the right running lanes to keep the ball moving up field.

“We take pride in that as an offensive line, and it really should not matter who is back there running the ball,” Lew said. “The running gaps should be there, and it does not change how we block based on who is in the backfield.”

Jerry Humphrey III covers Auburn sports forAL.com. You can follow him on X at @Jerryhump3or email him at [email protected].

The Indiana Fever play against the Connecticut Sun in a WNBA game tonight. The matchup is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN. Fans can watch this game for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV and Fubo TV. Alternatively, Sling offers a first-month discount to new users.

The Fever enter this matchup with an 11-10 record, and they have won back-to-back games. In their most recent game, the Fever defeated Dallas 102-83.

During the victory, Caitlin Clark led the Indiana offense. She ended the game with a double-double, as she recorded 14 points and 13 assists. If Clark performs similarly tonight, then Indiana will be a difficult team to beat.

Clark currently leads the team with nine assists per game.

The Sun have struggled this season, as they enter this matchup with a 3-18 record. The team has lost back-to-back games, so Connecticut will try to bounce back this evening.

In order to win tonight’s game, the Sun will need a great performance from their star player Tina Charles. She leads the team in scoring, as she averages more than 15 points per game.

Fans can watch this WNBA game for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV and Fubo TV. Alternatively, Sling offers a first-month discount to new users.

Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold is no stranger to big rivalries.

Before coming to the Plains, he spent two years at Oklahoma, participating in the famous Red River Rivalry between Oklahoma and Texas. At SEC Media Days, Arnold was asked to compare that game to Auburn’s rivalry with Alabama.

While Arnold hasn’t played in an Iron Bowl yet, he already has a feel for what the rivalry means at Auburn.

“OU-Texas, there’s a lot of hate,” Arnold said, “But I feel like the people here just cannot stand Alabama. It’s unbelievable.”

Arnold said the rivalries are similar and two of the best in college football, but the Iron Bowl animosity is just a little different.

“I feel like if you mention Alabama here, somebody would look at you funny,” Arnold said. “We even have a rule in our facility; you can’t wear red in our facility at all. If you do, you lose points and you have to do updowns.”

Auburn hasn’t won an Iron Bowl since 2019, but Arnold brings experience beating the Crimson Tide with him. He was Oklahoma’s starting quarterback in its 24-3 throttling of Alabama last season, leading the way with 131 rushing yards on 25 carries.

Arnold said his new teammates have voiced their frustration about Auburn’s lack of success against Alabama in recent years, giving the Tigers extra motivation for a home Iron Bowl in 2025.

“Even the old, fifth-year senior guys still haven’t beat Alabama,” Arnold said. “They came close twice, but they haven’t beat them yet. And so, for those guys, I want them to get a win. One last win before heading out.”

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m